


The Heist

by Uncle_Riko



Category: Love Live! School Idol Project, Love Live! Sunshine!!
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-19
Updated: 2019-09-19
Packaged: 2020-11-02 09:17:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,669
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20697023
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Uncle_Riko/pseuds/Uncle_Riko
Summary: It was rare for Riko to confide in her, to act so serious around her; their relationship was predicated on silly banter and nicknames, on Yoshiko annoying the hell out of Riko. Maybe that’s why Yoshiko was just now noticing that Riko felt this way.





	The Heist

**Author's Note:**

> Happy Birthday Riko!!!!
> 
> my foray back into fic writing is for good reason

A new year, a new school—a new beginning, it would seem. While all this was technically true, Aqours wouldn’t start anew—they’d pick up right where they left off. The six of them—no, the _nine_ of the them came to such an agreement.

Still, with school idol activities resuming, and with six remaining members left, that meant just a little more work for each of them. But none of them minded, in fact Yoshiko seemed particularly enthusiastic when they were divvying up the roles for the upcoming competitive season.

“I’ll help with the song composition!”

The group looked at her with a fair amount of surprise, especially Riko, who was tasked as the primary composer.

“Do you know _anything_ about music composition, Yoshiko-chan?” the redhead interrogated.

“Well, no—”

“Have you even written lyrics before?”

“N-Not exactly—”

“Did you have an idea in mind, something specific? Why the sudden interest?”

A rapid-fire, yet appropriate line of questioning—especially since Yoshiko had no proper answers to give her. “All right, all right, I get it! Look, I’m willing to learn though, and at the very least, I can get Lily tea, or coffee or whatever! I know Chika is busy with leader-type stuff, so she can’t exactly babysit Lily this time around.”

“Hey! If anything, I was the one keeping Chika-chan on track!” Riko pouted.

“Yeah, yeah, sure,” Yoshiko dismissed. “Well? Any objections?”

The rest of the group started to snicker. It was pretty clear that Yoshiko was just trying to spend more time with Riko. It was a mystery how Yoshiko didn’t realize how blatantly she was telegraphing her intentions, especially with this latest stunt. But perhaps even _more_ surprising was the fact that Riko was the literally the only one who hadn’t caught on to Yoshiko’s obvious crush on her.

And so the other four, in an attempt to support Yoshiko’s lofty ambitions, sounded off on the idea, and the two of them went right to work.

* * *

The music room was dusty, gloomy, a far cry from Uranohoshi’s warm, sunlit music room.

“You should’ve seen this place before we cleaned it,” Riko mused, addressing exactly what Yoshiko was thinking.

“Geez, this is _after _you guys cleaned it?—Wait, what the hell is that?”

Riko took the dusty velvet cover off the cheap-looking instrument in the corner of the room. “Ever seen a keyboard before?” she retorted sarcastically.

“Well, I mean, yeah, but where’s the piano?”

“We don’t have one at this school.”

“Seriously? Is a dinky little keyboard really gonna suffice?”

“It’s ok,” Riko reassured her. She didn’t know Yoshiko could be so passionate about instrument quality. “It’s not too much different than a normal piano,” she claimed, much to Yoshiko’s skepticism.

“Don’t you have a piano at your house?”

Riko sighed, “Yeah I do, but it can be hard to play on a regular basis, with the inn next door and my family around. And my room is kinda small, not exactly the best place to work on songs with the rest of the group.”

Yoshiko had an objection to that, Riko’s room sounded like the _ideal _place to be working on music…just the two of them…_alone_…b-but that was besides that point.

Her brow furrowed, “If you say so…” She changed the subject, as Riko went to plug the keyboard in. “So how exactly do you come up with the music, anyways?”

“Usually I like to warm up by playing some of our old stuff, some stuff from other groups like Muse, anything that comes to mind really, and try to gather some inspiration for a new song.” She positioned her fingers over the keys and began to play, all the while still keeping up the conversation, “A lot of times Chika will already have a theme, or lyrics, or even a song title in mind, so I’ll try to come up with something that elicits that kind of emotion or feeling she’s going for, if that makes sense.”

Yoshiko was about to mutter some tepid response in acknowledgment, but Riko suddenly stopped playing.

“It’s been kinda hard lately, you know? What with the new surroundings and everything that’s been going on.” She laughed, a hollow, sheepish laugh, “Guess I’ve had a bit of writer’s block of late.” She stared blankly up at the ceiling, before quickly adding, “Don’t tell the others though, I don’t want them to worry or anything. I’ll be fine!”

Yoshiko sat up in her chair, nodding solemnly. It was rare for Riko to confide in her, to act so serious around her; their relationship was predicated on silly banter and nicknames, on Yoshiko annoying the hell out of Riko. Maybe that’s why Yoshiko was just now noticing that Riko felt this way.

* * *

“It’s like she’s homesick or something…school-sick?” Yoshiko sat on the bus with the other second years, promptly breaking her promise not to tell anyone about Riko’s troubles. But who could blame her? She couldn’t help but be worried. This was Lily, after all.

“I mean, it’s only been a month,” Hanamaru chimed in. “I’m sure she isn’t the only one feeling that way, zura.”

That certainly was true, but it’s not like Yoshiko herself was sick of the new school or anything. She’d been adjusting just fine. “Well, are you two feeling overwhelmed by all the changes?”

Ruby and Hanamaru looked at each other, the former speaking for the both of them, “I guess we’re more excited than anything, starting a new school, making new friends—it’s been a lot of fun!”

“I’m sure it’ll just take time for Riko-chan to adjust. She’ll come around soon enough—oh, and her birthday is next week, I’m sure that’ll cheer her up, zura!”

“Her birthday, huh…”

Zuramaru need not remind her of Riko’s birthday. Of course Yoshiko would have the exact date of her number one little demon’s descent onto this planet etched into her memory. But, as highly anticipated a day as it was, Yoshiko had yet to decide on a present for Riko. And, given the circumstances, the pressure to deliver this year seemed more significant than the year prior. But what in the world could she get her that would live up to such expectations?

. . .

“Yoshiko-chan, I literally just saw you on the bus, not half an hour ago,” Hanamaru muttered groggily into her phone. “What is it, zura?”

“We’re gonna steal Uranohoshi’s piano!”

“Excuse me, what!? And what is this ‘we’ you speak of??”

“Yeah, you, me and Ruby.”

“And why are we doing this, zura?”

“For Lily!”

* * *

It was hard to say who was more surprised, Yoshiko, upon seeing Ruby and Hanamaru had worn their school uniforms to a heist, or Ruby and Hanamaru, upon seeing Yoshiko had actually worn a full thief’s get up, complete with a ski cap and eye black.

“What are you two doing?!” Yoshiko whisper-screamed. “If someone catches us they’ll know what school we’re from!”

“I mean, it’s kinda obvious isn’t it? That we’re students that used to go here? It wouldn’t be hard to put two and two together, zura.”

“Whatever, did you bring what I asked you to?”

“No, I did not bring a lock cutter.” Hanamaru pushed the gate open with the greatest of ease. “This gate has never once been locked since the school closed, zura.”

“Oh.”

The trio entered the building through the front doors, which were, conveniently, also unlocked. It’d been a whole summer since they’d last visited, but after spending so much time here, navigating the school’s layout was a piece of cake, even in the dead of night.

Ruby clung on to Hanamaru’s arm, “I-It’s kind of creepy wandering around an abandoned school at night, isn’t it?”

“I’m sure Yohane-chan feels right at home here, then!” Hanamaru teased.

“Shhhh!! Be quiet!”

“Who’s going to hear us? No one’s here, zura!!”

They finally reached the music room _on the second floor_ when Yoshiko came across their first obstacle…_they were on the second floor. _She shook it off, w-whatever, they’d figure it out later!

She flipped the lights on, and there, bathed in all its glory, was the grand piano, just as Riko had left it.

Yoshiko approached the piano, lifting the cover. A thin layer of dust had settled on the keys, but it was in otherwise pristine condition. Absentmindedly, she pressed down on a key, the clear ring reverberating throughout the otherwise empty room. Now it wasn’t one of Riko’s elegant melodies, but just the sound, the one note alone, was enough to justify this whole crazy thing in Yoshiko’s mind.

“H-How are we going to get this out of here…?” Ruby broke Yoshiko out of her stupor.

“…That’s a good question.”

Yoshiko sized up the piano before rolling up her sleeves. She wedged herself between the piano and the wall and pushed. Not surprisingly, the piano didn’t budge.

“You didn’t think this through, did you, zura?”

“No, of course I didn’t think this through!” Yoshiko snapped. “When do I ever act rationally when it comes to Lily—”

Hanamaru’s gaze softened, “You really do love her, don’t you?”

“S-Shut up!!” Yoshiko spun around, hiding her deepening blush from the other two.

She returned her attention to the piano, bracing herself, back towards the piano, readying herself for another push. Flanked on her sides, Ruby and Hanamaru joined her, both with smiles of encouragement. The three of them counted down, giving a synchronized push towards the doorway. They heard a loud screech; from the scuff mark in the floor, they had managed to move the piano about an inch or two.

Yoshiko wiped the sweat off her brow, exchanging glances with the other two, who simply nodded, as they readied themselves for another push.

. . .

Not long after they’d reached the doorway (which took a long while, mind you), the three of them flopped to the ground in exhaustion.

“O-Ok,” Hanamaru huffed, “H-How…are we…gonna get this…through the doorway…”

“I’m working on it…” Yoshiko replied, out of breath. Slowly, she got back up on her feet. “I’ll get us some drinks…you two…you two take a break…”

Yoshiko finally caught her breath, and egressed, greeted by the cool night air of the school grounds. The moon was bright and clear, perched in a cloudless sky. Ruby was wrong; the school wasn’t creepy at night—quite the opposite. After all the time they’d spent here, after all the memories they’d made, how could she see this place as anything but beautiful?

She finally reached the vending machines which were, not surprisingly, out of order. It was fine, she’d mostly stepped outside to clear her head. But still, the issue of moving the piano still loomed. How were they going to get it through the doorway? Turn it on its side maybe? And how were they going to get it down to the first floor? Not to mention all the way to their new school? Damn, she really hadn’t thought this through. And the fact that Ruby and Hanamaru had come along knowing that…well, Yoshiko couldn’t ask for better partners in crime.

Yoshiko finally returned to the room, finding Ruby and Hanamaru, shoulder-to-shoulder, sleeping soundly, peacefully. She smiled wistfully, they’d done all they could, but realistically, they were never going to get that piano out of there, were they?

Yoshiko herself was feeling tired, and the floor, hard as it was, looked quite cool and inviting. Maybe she’d lay down just for a minute…

. . .

“Hey, what are you girls doing here?! No one’s supposed to be here. We’re prepping the building for demolition.”

Yoshiko bolted up, wiping the drool off her chin. Sunlight was filtering through the windows; they’d been there all night. Her first instinct was to look towards the door, half expecting the piano to have magically moved, but it remained where’d they left it the night prior.

Ruby and Hanamaru stirred soon after, and the three finally realized someone had addressed them.

“Hello?” The man, likely a construction worker from his outfit, re-fired his question, “What are you all doing here? It isn’t safe to be here.”

“We just wanted the piano…” Yoshiko mumbled groggily.

“The piano? Look, kid, there’s no way you’re getting that out of here.”

That got Yoshiko’s attention. “What? So you’re just gonna demolish the piano with the rest of the school?”

“Hey, we got our orders, kid. Didn’t say nothing about saving anything, especially not no piano.”

Yoshiko sprang up in front of the piano, her arms outstretched dramatically. “I’ll never let you have this piano! I’ll guard it with my life!”

The worker rolled his eyes in annoyance. “Look, kid, if you want this piano so bad, you’re gonna have to hire some movers to haul it out of here. But we’re starting demolition here real soon, so you’ll have to do it before the end of the week.”

“Hire…? H-How much is that going to cost?”

“I dunno, fifteen, twenty-thousand?”

Eyes wide, Yoshiko looked to the others. “A-Anyone have twenty-thousand yen to spare?”

Woefully, the other two shook their heads.

. . .

Yoshiko flopped onto her bed, still exhausted. Add to that the fact that their efforts from the night before bore no fruit, she was rightfully a little disappointed. She rolled off the bed, lifting the mattress up to reveal her secret cash stash. She took the cash and counted it up; she had just enough to cover the moving costs, but it’d mean cleaning out the funds she’d been saving for Fuyucomi… She shook her head vigorously. Why was she hesitating? This was for Lily! She’d give up a thousand Comikets if it meant Riko wouldn’t have to be sad anymore!

She whipped out her phone and dialed the number, “…Hi, I’d like to have a piano moved…”

* * *

It was so quiet. The school wasn’t bustling with after-school clubs or activities like Uranohoshi. The hallways and classrooms were all empty, and so soon after classes let out. Suddenly, Riko’s mentality made sense. Things were different here, weren’t they? Yoshiko herself was about to head home when she heard something coming from a room at the end of the hall.

As she got closer, it was more apparent the sounds she heard were coming from a piano, crisp and full—a world of a difference from the keyboard she’d listened to the other day. And it wasn’t even a question as to who was sitting at the bench, producing such a gorgeous melody.

Riko didn’t stop playing, not even as Yoshiko entered the music room.

She looked so at peace, so in her element. A smile graced her lips as her eyes met Yoshiko’s, and it took everything in Yoshiko’s power to keep her heart from leaping out of her chest.

“H-Hey, h-h-ow was your birthday…?” Yoshiko managed to sputter, as soon as Riko’s song finished.

Riko slid the cover over the piano. “It was good! You know, I got the most amazing surprise.”

“O-Oh, really…?” 

She motioned to the piano. “Crazy, but I came in to school today, and what should I find, but this piano, all the way from Uranohoshi!”

“W-Wow, you’re right…!” Yoshiko pretended to act surprised, “I-I totally didn’t notice it when I walked in…!”

Riko smirked; they both knew Yoshiko was a terrible liar. “I heard whoever got it moved from Uranohoshi had to jump through a lot of hoops just to get it here.”

“I-Is that so?” Yoshiko scratched at her cheek sheepishly. “I-I don’t really know anything about piano moving, so I couldn’t say…”

Riko stood from the bench, gathering her belongings. “Well, I only wish I knew who was behind it, so I could thank them properly.” She smiled, “So I could tell them that it was the most thoughtful, caring thing someone’s ever done for me.”

Yoshiko gulped. If Riko hadn’t seen through her façade already, her blush definitely wasn’t helping.

Riko headed for the door, before doubling back, leaning over to kiss Yoshiko on the cheek.

“…Thank you, Yocchan.”

**Author's Note:**

> why are my riko fics never starring riko lol


End file.
